What do you look for in a New Tampa Property Manager?

With so many home for rent and sale in the New Tampa area, many homeowners are holding vacant houses as the surplus inventory of homes is easily much greater then the demand. With more would be sellers turning to the rental market, an important question becomes "How should a homeowner evaluate a local property management company?" Well, there are many "How to hire a property manager" guides out there, so I will not try to rehash all of that material. What I will focus on are some of the key elements that to me are critical items in New Tampa for 2008.

First, we must look at the current housing market, which is still showing no signs of improvement in New Tampa. Prices continue to drop and more and more "short sale" listings appear at the bottom end of the market every day. Why is this important to note? Well, with houses not moving and prices falling, there are many Real Estate agents that are finding it really hard to make any money and looking toward other sources of income. While this is sometimes needed to "thin out the herd", in New Tampa there are so many homes available that many are deciding to try property management as an alternate source of income. While there is nothing inherently wrong with this, it is important to note that there will be some agents out there that really do not know what they are doing or are learning on the job while earning a fee. Because of some of the real risks a landlord faces, it will be important to find out if this is the case prior to signing on with someone "giving you a great deal" for property management or tenant placement services.

In any market, a vacant rental unit is the first problem a landlord wants and needs to be filled. This is no different in New Tampa, but the over supply in the current rental market makes filling the rental a real challenge. An experienced and realistic property manager will make sure your property is listed at a market price that will get the unit rented within 60 days. This is a big statement in a market that has 4-6 months worth of rental inventory. Many just have the unit listed at what the unit rented for a few years ago, not realizing the prices have fallen and the rent needs to be adjusted to the current market. Unfortunately, many landlords get "stuck" in a rental listing contract with an agent at a rental price that is higher and a commission that is lower then they were quoted by a respected property manager. While on paper this seems like the best way to optimize profit (higher rent, lower commission), when the unit sits vacant because it can not be rented at that price, the potential profit disappears and in fact the landlord will probably lose more money this way.

To address a vacancy, the property manager must provide a few critical items. First, proper guidance to the real market rent of the property. It really does not matter what the landlords expenses are, the market rent is the market rent. A tenant does not care that a landlord pays $2,000/month in mortgage, taxes and HOA fees on a 3 bedroom house in Heritage Isle. What a tenant cares about is that there are 4 houses that fit the same description that are in the $1,300/month range. Listing with the rent higher then $1,300/month on a comparable home will not help the landlord be less negative, it will only ensure the property is vacant as tenants move into more cost effective rental solutions.

The next important item a property manager must do to address a vacancy is to properly advertise a rental property. In New Tampa, there is no local newspaper that tenant prospects pick up to look for a rental home. Nearly all tenants looking for a home for rent in New Tampa do so using the internet. So, internet advertising is important, but proper internet advertising is the key. Many people use sources that has helped them find a place before, such as Craigslist and Rentals.com (formerly RentClicks). Anyone not using these resources at a bare minimum should be discredited as they are two of the top providers of real rental leads. The MLS is also a very important source for advertisement. As agents look for ways to earn a little money during this difficult time, many are taking on would be tenants to earn a little money. Exposure to these agents will also produce some tenants.

Most agents and New Tampa property managers will also list your New Tampa home for rent on their website. To figure out if this adds ANY value to your marketing needs, check to see if a tenant searching for a New Tampa Rental Home will find the agent or property management companies website. They will probably find the Rentals.com website with various searches on Google and the other search engines. However, if your rental agent or property management company does not show up on the first page of searches a tenant will use, the fact that the rental listing is on their site is of little or no value.

While placing a tenant is critical in New Tampa, screening tenants properly and removing a tenant that does not pay is equally as important. Find out who the agent or property manager screens and what they screen for. Any adult that occupies the property over the age of 18 should be screened, unless they are the child of the tenants in which case any child 21 or older should be screened. All tenants should have criminal background checked, including a sex offender search and an OFAC terrorist search. They should also have previous residences verified for proper on time payment and no damages, income verified to be what is stated on the application and a credit check. Any tenant that is not screened in a way that verifies all of these things is a potential liability.

Removing a tenant that does not pay is also critical, I will address this and other issues in part 2...